The men who run sports front offices are inextricably tied to the coaches they hire. Well, they’re tied to them until things go south in the standings. Then team presidents or general managers pull out tree loppers and cut their coaches. It’s quite an existence on both sides.
For now, you can’t mention Bears GM Ryan Pace in this town without mentioning Bears coach Matt Nagy. You can’t mention either without mumbling something unkind under your breath.
Fortunes change. Last year, Pace and Nagy always had someone patting them on the back. The Bears went 12-4 and won their division.